Euro 1991 no foam
The deteriorated OEM foam is shown in the pic. It has a golden/brown hue to it. Was the OEM originally a grey/black hue which degrades over time to the above shown hue? Any new sources out there since this thread was originally posted? rgds, vincenzo Image Unavailable, Please Login
Henk at HVL in the Netherlands, he has a good match for the foam. It is the same stuff used on Swiss model 328's
According to Ferrari the foam was US only and the silver stuff was Swiss only and it was to help comply with those 2 countries strict noise standards. In practice most US cars had the foam, some US cars came with the silver stuff and some US cars came with nothing. I have personally seen all 3 on US cars I have known and serviced since new. What kind of musical chairs they played in the rest of the world I have no idea.
If you are having it judged at Cavallino my better half is your Chief Class Judge and she knows full well that foam, no foam or silver stuff is correct.
Mine is UK market, (Euro but RHD) 1990 that did have the foam. Replaced it 5 or 6 years ago with a non-standard product. Entire lifetime in the Australian heat probably didn't help.
According to the 90 parts book all base version cars went to the silver Dynamat type stuff after 76393. I never paid attention to the changes of the non US cars. Interesting yours has foam. Suggests they were inconsistent with all the cars. 76393 should be early 88.
Interesting. I'm 84843. As replacement I used a foam lined with a metallic material and a self-sticking backing used in air-conditioning applications I believe. Looks quite good. Didn't want to leave it bare as I thought it must have been there for a reason.
If a car is a US spec car, the foam should be there. But without the foam there is no points deducted. Just curious, why don't they deduct. If two US spec cars are judged the same and one has it and the other does not, who gets awarded the trophy.
I am trying to tell you not all US cars had it. We do not judge for it. You can say all US cars should have it all you like but that does not make it true. If you don't believe me call and ask Chris Current, Chief Judge for the FCA and Cavallino. He also judges at Pebble Beach and is a board member of the IAC/PFA. He will pick up the phone and ask me.
I appologize, my bad, misread the post. I thought it said all US cars only. It would be nutty if they did not care.
Someone told me that the "special" foam would melt at high temperatures and assist in choking an engine fire. Maybe thats a myth then.
Myth. Nothing special about it. I cannot understand why there has been confusion on that. It clearly states in the parts book that it is sound insulation and there are 2 types used depending on year and market.
As an aside, it is MUCHO simpler to remove the center portion of the engine cover and perform any foam stripping, glue removal, painting or foam re-application with the piece on a bench rather than upside down over the engine. If I recall, there are 5 10mm bolts on the rear edge and maybe 6 or 8 larger (?13mm) on the sides. Also, I recall disconnecting two electrical connections (one each side). I'd attach photos,but I guess my silver subscription ran out. I'll re-subscribe and post photos later.
Here are the promised photos: Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
I can confirm 78624 had the grey/brown foam from the factory, not the silver Dynamat style, unless I misunderstand your use of "base version cars"
Thanks for the tip... I sent an email but have yet to get a response. Perhaps they don't want to deal with international sales rgds, Vincenzo
Henk definitely sells internationally, I've bought many times from him in the past, he was probably at Cavallino judging the Preservation class, and usually stays a few days after to visit some of his local dealers - at least that was his time frame last year. I didn't see him this year, but I'd be a bit surprised if he hadn't come over.
Worth noting, I watched the judges point out an incorrect engine lid foam on Saturday on one of the cars being judged...better not to have it than to have it wrong.
Color me surprised, when we spoke last year, it sounded like he really enjoyed the judging on the Preservation side, I didn't expect he would have missed it.
It was a topic of discussion at CC between myself and another judge that is putting together judging guidelines for the TR. He is an original owner of an 86 that never had foam. There is no question that all 3 versions are and will continue to be acceptable. Does this mean it will not still be judged incorrectly at some events? No, there are always incorrect deductions and that will never change but it is a competitors responsibility to know their car, know what is correct and be its advocate. If an incorrect deduction is made, challenge it.